Ruling · Mahāśivarātri · 1921

Monday 7 March

Boundaryin Shaoxing, under the Rashtriya Panchang method. Both nights qualify and the authorities the rule cites disagree. Say “contested”.

Decide it for

30°00′ N 120°35′ E · Asia/Shanghai · GeoNames 1795855

The two nights

One ghaṭī is 24 minutes. Niśītha is 1 ghaṭikā either side of midnight.

Night of Monday 7 March

Taken. Both nights qualify; the rule is silent, and this one is covered longer.

niśītha begins 23:45  00:33 niśītha ends
22:5723:2123:4500:0900:3300:5701:21

48 of 48 minutes covered

Night of Tuesday 8 March

Qualifies with 48 of 48 minutes. Not taken.

niśītha begins 23:44  00:32 niśītha ends
Caturdaśī ends 00:42:45
22:5623:2023:4400:0800:3200:5601:20

48 of 48 minutes covered

Caturdaśī presentNiśītha, the window the rule readsThe instant the tithi begins or ends

How it was decided

  1. 01

    Aṅga

    Caturdaśī runs from 22:54 on Mon 7 Mar to 00:43 on Wed 9 Mar.

    1921-03-07T14:53:36Z → 1921-03-08T16:42:45Z

  2. 02

    Kāla

    Niśītha is 1 ghaṭikā either side of midnight: 23:45–00:33 on the 7th, 23:44–00:32 on the 8th.

    nishita: midnight-pm-1-ghatika · sunrise and sunset: upper limb, 31′ + 16′

  3. 03

    Rule

    Caturdaśī must be present during niśītha. It covers 48 of 48 minutes on the 7th and 48 of 48 on the 8th.

    Calendar Reform Committee 1955, General Rules for Religious Festivals, p. 105

  4. 04

    Tie-break

    Both nights qualify and the cited authorities disagree. The one covered longer is ruled, as a boundary.

    priority: disputed → greater-coverage · margin 620 s

  5. 05

    Ruling

    Mahāśivarātri, Shaoxing, 1921: Monday 7 March.

    confidence: boundary (tie-break-disputed)

Say it like this

In Shaoxing, Mahāśivarātri 1921 falls on Monday 7 March. Caturdaśī runs from 22:54 on Mon 7 Mar to 00:43 on Wed 9 Mar and covers all of niśītha that night. It also reaches the next night for 48 minutes; the rule does not say which to take, and the one covered longer is ruled: treat the date as contested.

ahargana.org/shaoxing/festivals/1921/maha-shivaratri · pac-rp@2026.1

Who says what

AuthorityKindDate
Ahargaṇa, pac-rpThis rulingMon 7 Mar
Ahargaṇa, classicalDisc centre, no refractionMon 7 Mar
compat-drikpanchangComparison profileMon 7 Mar
No institution has a recorded ruling for Shaoxing.

Institutional rulings are recorded with a source address, and are never edited to agree.

The rule, as data

/rules/maha-shivaratri · ruleset 2026.3-draft

Month
Māgha, amānta
Pakṣa · aṅga
Kṛṣṇa · Caturdaśī
Kāla
Niśītha
Priority
Disputed
Tie-break
Longer coverage, as a boundary
Reference
CRC 1955, p. 105

“K 14 Mahasivaratri (nisithavyapini) — In some opinion it is to be observed on nisitha and in some opinion on pradosa. If occurs on two successive nisithas then according to Hemadri it is to be observed on the first day and according to Madhava, to be observed on the second day” Calendar Reform Committee 1955, General Rules for Religious Festivals, p. 105. The alternative opinion that reads pradoṣa instead of niśītha is not evaluated.

The same rule, elsewhere

Twelve places, west to east. Local clock times.

PlaceCaturdaśīNiśītha 7thCoveredNiśītha 8thCoveredRuled
Los Angeles06:54 → 08:4323:4048 min23:400 min7 Mar
Chicago08:54 → 10:4323:3748 min23:370 min7 Mar
Jersey City09:54 → 11:4323:4348 min23:430 min7 Mar
Port of Spain10:54 → 12:4323:5348 min23:530 min7 Mar
London14:54 → 16:4323:4748 min23:470 min7 Mar
Durban16:54 → 18:4323:4348 min23:430 min7 Mar
Dubai18:54 → 20:4300:0648 min00:050 min7 Mar
Delhi20:24 → 22:1300:0848 min00:080 min7 Mar
Kolkata20:24 → 22:1323:2448 min23:230 min7 Mar
Singapore21:54 → 23:4323:5248 min23:520 min7 Mar
Sydney00:54 → 02:4323:430 min23:4248 min8 Mar
Suva02:54 → 04:4323:540 min23:5348 min8 Mar
Profile · tradition
pac-rp@2026.1 · smarta
Rule
maha-shivaratri@2026.3-draft
Engine · kernel
0.1.0 · de440 7eef…ea74
Boundary margin
300 s

About Ahargaṇa